Hi, im pretty much new to this. For my first run I am running bottled nutrients (like adavanced, fox farms etc). But I am moving on to organic living soils for my next go around. So heres a pre draft list of what im considering of cooking in my kitchen. Any help would be appreciated. Thanx: Soil (1). 1.5 cubic feet of Roots organics soil. (Base) (2). 12 quarts of Fox farms Ocean Forest soil (3). 24 quarts of Fox farms Happy Frogs soil (4). 20-25 lbs of Earthworm castings Dry ferts: (1). 1.5 - 2 lbs of Jamaican(0-10-0), Indonesian (0.5-13-0.2) & Mexican (10-1-1) bat guano mix. (2). 1/2 - 3/4 lb of Peruvian seabird guano (12-11-2) (3). 1/2 - 1 lb of Insect frass (4-3-2) (4). 2 lbs of Blood & bone meal (6-7-0) (5). 2 lbs of Azomite (6). 1/2 cup of dolomite (7). 2 tbsp of humic acids & 2 tbsp of fulvic acids (8). 1 cup of epson salt (9). 1 lb of Green sand (10). 1.5 - 2 lbs of Rock phosphate (11). 2.5 oz of Cali-secrets Bio live meal 5-4-2 ( contains: beneficial bacteria, mychorrizae, alfalfa meal, fishbone meal, fish meal, crab meal, shrimp meal, kelp meal, langbeinite)
Sounds pretty complicated dude. You could simplify the shit out of this. There is lots of info in the pinned threads. Base: 1/3 Canadian sphagnum peat moss 1/3 aeration (pumice, lava, perlite) 1/3 high quality compost/vermicompost Amendments: Kelp meal Crab meal Neem/karanja cake Minerals: Glacial rock dust and/or Basalt That's really all you need.
For the dry ferts, you should totally eliminate all of #1. #2 has you covered. Also eliminate, #3, #7 and #11. Decrease the Azomite and bump up the dolomite. But still, you could do this a lot cheaper and simpler. Wet
Helps to start with a consistent measuring system. With potting soil it's easier to work in volume (cubic yards, feet, gallons, etc) than by weight, like you would in the field. This applies to measuring amendments as well; ie 2 cups kelp meal, 1 cup crab shell meal and 1 cup neem seed meal per cubic foot (7.5 gallons) of soil. Premier brand sphagnum peat moss is available across most of the US in big box stores like Home Depot or even some nurseries. HD carries this material locally for roughly $10 in my area. This material is far superior to anything you can buy out of a bag like Happy Frog or Roots Organics, as this is the parent company that collects the peat from its natural environment and distributes it to the smaller companies. (like Fox Farm and Roots Organics) I utilize neem seed meal, kelp meal, crab shell meal, oyster shell flour, gypsum and rock dust (granite, basalt or local crushed rock) for my main sources of nutrition. Comfrey, stinging nettles and my homemade vermicompost round out the deal for myself. I make soil using the the 1/3 ratio. 1/3 sp. peat moss 1/3 humus (vermicompost/compost) 1/3 aeration (rice hulls, perlite, scoria, etc) I usually soak the peat over night to ensure hydration throughout the material, as its hydrophobic when dried. I then mix the deal once thoroughly with just the above "base mix" before adding amendments and mixing again. The advised amendment rates are 3-4 cups per cubic foot, TOTAL amendments, excluding your liming agent (oyster shell flour and gypsum in my case) and rock dust. For example I use 2 cups kelp, 1 cup crab shell meal, 1 cup neem seed meal per cubic foot as my amendments. For lime (calcitic limestone, agricultural lime, oyster shell flour) the advised rate of usage is 1 cup per cubic foot. Avoid using dolomitic limestone in your soil. I use around 3/4 cup (1/2 cup oyster, 1/4 cup gypsum) per cubic foot, but I also use crab shell meal and my own vermicompost, both of which provide calcium.